Face to face with God | 5

“This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: “The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face towards you and give you peace.” Numbers 6.23-26

There are two references to God’s face in this blessing. A more literal translation of each phrase is:

The Lord, his face to you, shine,  The Lord, his face to you, turn.

It seems then, that the blessing of God is about what happens when we perceive his face – but what do we mean by the face of God?

It’s interesting to read in Exodus 33.11 about God and Moses speaking ‘face to face’, but only a little later in verse 20 God says to Moses, “You cannot see my face.”  This suggests that the phrase ‘the face of God’ refers to God’s actual presence rather than a literal interpretation of it.

God’s presence is not a mystical experience for only a few people but is available to us all.  In the Old Testament, we are told that it was only Moses who was given the reality of the presence of God, but now that is different.  The gift of the Holy Spirit assures us of the reality of God’s presence with us, so if we doubt his presence it’s not that he is not there, but more likely that we don’t believe him to be there.

Worship is a gift to us in such circumstances.  We worship an unseen God for his presence among us (which we may not feel), but the more we begin to worship what we do not see and do not feel, the more a different type of awareness comes to us and God’s presence becomes a reality. Take a few moments to worship him for the reality of his loving presence with you right now.

Why not listen to one of John’s one minute thoughts on this thought: https://youtu.be/URAm9vjl0wk

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